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gallagher
2010-05-09, 12:19 PM
hey playground!
everyone has their favorite piece of equipment that is a "just in case" thing. some people like a mirror, some like chalk, some people can never have too much rope (http://image.spreadshirt.com/image-server/image/composition/2405245/view/1/producttypecolor/1/type/png/width/280/height/280)

i was wondering, what is your favorite piece of equipment to haul around? has it ever come in incredibly handy? are there any creative uses that you like to use it for?

i must say that i always like to have alot of extra oil. need to start a fire in a jiffy? want to make a molotov cocktail? not a caster, but want a grease spell that lasts more than a few rounds?

and of course, when defending a stronghold, and the enemy is trying to use ladders to get up and over, pouring oil down the ladder and setting it aflame is always a fun one

Greenish
2010-05-09, 12:26 PM
Water clock (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/equipment/goodsAndServices.htm#waterClock). It's heavy, relatively expensive and utterly useless.

But if you ever manage to find a use for it, and then pull it out of the backpack and offhandedly remark that you had just for the occasion, you'll win everyone's eternal awe.


[Edit]: Feather Token (tree) (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicItems/wondrousItems.htm#tree) deserves a mention too.

Darklord Xavez
2010-05-09, 12:27 PM
A grappling hook (along with lots and lots of rope). It can be used to lower yourself down somewhere, climb up somewhere, grab something you can't reach, and as a last-ditch emergency weapon. It's just amazingly useful.
-Xavez

arguskos
2010-05-09, 12:27 PM
In b4 spells? :smalltongue: Note: this is a joke

Ok, serious answer: marbles. They're great for nearly anything, save against huge monsters or bugs.

Darklord Xavez
2010-05-09, 12:28 PM
In b4 spells? :smalltongue: Note: this is a joke

Ok, serious answer: marbles. They're great for nearly anything, save against huge monsters or bugs.

Throw them into a huge monster's eyes.
Giant: OH MY GOD I CANT SEE SOMEBODY PLEASE HELP ME OH MY GOD OH MY GOD OH MY GOD!
-Xavez

Yuki Akuma
2010-05-09, 12:31 PM
There is nothing you cannot do with an Immovable Rod, a Decanter of Endless Water, a Portable Hole and/or an arbitrarily high amount of rope.

gbprime
2010-05-09, 12:31 PM
A leather pouch of chalk dust. So many uses.

It even once created an employment opportunity for my swashbuckler/rogue, as he convinced a public official that the odd dust was the remnant of a poison, and that clearly I had saved him from an assassination attempt. (Hey, any tactic that got me closer to that council lord's daughter was fair game. :smallamused: )

Darklord Xavez
2010-05-09, 12:34 PM
A leather pouch of chalk dust. So many uses.

It even once created an employment opportunity for my swashbuckler/rogue, as he convinced a public official that the odd dust was the remnant of a poison, and that clearly I had saved him from an assassination attempt. (Hey, any tactic that got me closer to that council lord's daughter was fair game. :smallamused: )

You would be lots of fun at parties. And I agree with everything you said.:smallcool:

Flickerdart
2010-05-09, 12:36 PM
An 11-foot pole, for those pesky 10ft radius traps, or delivering contact poison if you haven't got reach.

Kosjsjach
2010-05-09, 12:51 PM
There is nothing you cannot do with an Immovable Rod, a Decanter of Endless Water, a Portable Hole and/or an arbitrarily high amount of rope.

I like the way you think.

gallagher
2010-05-09, 12:51 PM
An 11-foot pole, for those pesky 10ft radius traps, or delivering contact poison if you haven't got reach.i must admit, that if i do not have a rogue handy, or some type of anti-trap ally, i tend to use a summoned creature to get rid of the trap for me. preferably something with improved evasion, but otherwise im not really bothered by using a cat or something to kill a trap.

and contact poison? hello blowgun.

Flickerdart
2010-05-09, 01:03 PM
Yes, but unless your blowgun can summon creatures at will and has infinite ammo, it's nowhere as efficient as using a single infinitely usable item to do both. Plus, with a blowgun, if you miss, you waste a dose of poison, which would set you back thousands of GP for the ones worth using.

gallagher
2010-05-09, 01:09 PM
Yes, but unless your blowgun can summon creatures at will and has infinite ammo, it's nowhere as efficient as using a single infinitely usable item to do both. Plus, with a blowgun, if you miss, you waste a dose of poison, which would set you back thousands of GP for the ones worth using.

if i have thousands of dollars worth of poison on one dose, then i would probably be putting it on a glove and shaking hands or smacking the person i intend to use it on. or possibly sneaking into the room belonging to that person and putting it on the inside of their gloves, or something equally sneaky.

i am not arguing that the 11 foot pole isnt a good idea. it is in fact a marvelous idea. i am just saying that i use different tactics.

EccentricOwl
2010-05-09, 01:44 PM
Acid melts through armor and metal.

Even if the door is adamntium, you can melt the stone around it with enough time and acid. =P

Darklord Xavez
2010-05-09, 01:53 PM
Acid melts through armor and metal.

Even if the door is adamntium, you can melt the stone around it with enough time and acid. =P

YES.
-Xavez

Ernir
2010-05-09, 01:54 PM
A battering ram.

Unless there's a 3rd level martial adept in the party to Mountain Hammer down doors for you, of course.

Darklord Xavez
2010-05-09, 01:57 PM
Not really an item, but still: The Stupid Rogue. If you have one in your party, he will be your slave! Everyone knows that having a PC as your slave is great fun!
-Xavez

DarkEternal
2010-05-09, 02:10 PM
i must admit, that if i do not have a rogue handy, or some type of anti-trap ally, i tend to use a summoned creature to get rid of the trap for me. preferably something with improved evasion, but otherwise im not really bothered by using a cat or something to kill a trap.

and contact poison? hello blowgun.


Not entirely sure, but aren't summoned creatures basically just your allies, but more like npc's in battle that should be controlled by the DM or something?

Flickerdart
2010-05-09, 02:12 PM
Not entirely sure, but aren't summoned creatures basically just your allies, but more like npc's in battle that should be controlled by the DM or something?
It's not that hard to pick up a Celestial Badger and hurl it forward a few paces.

senrath
2010-05-09, 02:24 PM
Not to mention that, if you can communicate with the summoned creature, it will follow your orders.

Starscream
2010-05-09, 02:44 PM
A factotum. What?

Okay then, a portable hole. Unlike a bag of holding which tears if sharp things are placed inside, this thing is pretty much indestructible. Next time the DM thinks its clever to confront you with a pit of acid, use it to fill your portable hole. You now have around 8000 liters of acid. A tiny flask costs 10 gp. Not to mention all the combat uses for a big pit of acid that you can put anywhere. Might be able to do it with magma as well, but you'd need a way to keep it hot or it will eventually solidify.

Good for traps, too. If the rogue spots a trap, rather than take a gamble on disarming it, just throw the hole over it upside down. The trap now triggers inside an extra-dimensional space.

I'm not sure if by RAW the hole has its own gravity or not. If not, you could stick it on the wall or ceiling and have all the stuff fall out, which could be handy in the acid example above. Simply hold it so it faces the enemies and open; acid tidal wave.

If it does have its own gravity, even cooler. Stick it on the ceiling and use as a sniper hole, or place to rest where wandering monsters won't think to look right away. Or use it to perform incredible feats of strength. Place an extremely heavy stone block in there, with chains anchored to it. If you need to rip a door off its hinges, attach the chains to the door, and simply back away carrying the hole. The physics are a little wonky, but the DM will get a headache figuring them out, and that's the important thing.

Oh yeah, you may need to place it on a flat surface to open it, but there is no requirement for the thickness of that surface. You could put it on a piece of cardboard and it would work.

Zexion
2010-05-09, 03:31 PM
Immovable rod. Hands down. Use it as the best ladder ever, or just use the earth's rotation loophole to travel at extremely high speeds. Use it to bar a door, force it down an unconscious enemy's throat to make sure he won't be going anywhere for a while; the possibilities are endless.

gdiddy
2010-05-09, 04:10 PM
Immovable rod. Hands down. Use it as the best ladder ever, or just use the earth's rotation loophole to travel at extremely high speeds. Use it to bar a door, force it down an unconscious enemy's throat to make sure he won't be going anywhere for a while; the possibilities are endless.

It's true, though YMMV, depending on the inertia rules in your uni-

*CLANG*

What the **** was that?

Zexion
2010-05-09, 04:15 PM
It's true, though YMMV, depending on the inertia rules in your uni-

*CLANG*

What the **** was that?
Sir! I think General Evil has an Immovable Rod stuffed down his throat!
Well, take it out!
I tried, sir! It's immovable!
Oh, ****...

Divide by Zero
2010-05-09, 04:17 PM
or just use the earth's rotation loophole to travel at extremely high speeds.

Though if you do that, you'll probably also have to deal with the fact that the Earth is also moving, and by the time you can turn it off, you're fifty thousand miles away in the middle of a vacuum. That or you're plowed through the ground, depending on which side of the planet you're on.

Edit: Immovable rods are very good at killing catgirls, though.

Darklord Xavez
2010-05-09, 04:24 PM
Though if you do that, you'll probably also have to deal with the fact that the Earth is also moving, and by the time you can turn it off, you're fifty thousand miles away in the middle of a vacuum. That or you're plowed through the ground, depending on which side of the planet you're on.

Also a problem with time travel.
-Xavez

Amphetryon
2010-05-09, 04:25 PM
Small Steel Mirror. Use as a signal beacon, a spying aid, and fighting those pesky medusae.

Darklord Xavez
2010-05-09, 04:29 PM
Small Steel Mirror. Use as a signal beacon, a spying aid, and fighting those pesky medusae.

I KNEW I was forgetting something when I purchased equipment.
-Xavez

crazedloon
2010-05-09, 04:36 PM
shapesand is the best most adaptable Item ever.

for 100 gp you have just about every mundane Item in any book.

Need a 11 foot pole that doesnt blow up when you trigger the trap? Just use shapesand and will it back together.

Need a ladder that fits into your pack? Shapesand

forgot your grapnel hook? your pitons? shapesand


and of course the list is as long as your imagination is wild all for 100 gp

also my favorite trick is to buy a bunch and carry it in my portable hole. If I am not using it for anything in particular at the time I have it set up as spikes for a portable pit trap :smallwink:

WeeFreeMen
2010-05-09, 04:39 PM
Simply my favorite, the most versatile and useful Item in the entire world.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b60OZhrTB6o

This is my shovel. There are many like it but this one is mine. My shovel is my best friend. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life. Without me, my shovel is useless. Without my shovel I am useless. I must shovel my shovel true. I must dig straighter than my enemy, who is trying to kill me. I must chop him before he shoots me. I will. Before God I swear this creed: my shovel and myself are defenders of my country, we are the masters of our enemy, we are the saviors of my life. So be it, until there is no enemy, but peace. Amen.

Nefarion Xid
2010-05-09, 04:41 PM
Best mundane item? A bottle of 100 proof rum. Good for setting things on fire or making friends! But, not in that order.

Miscellaneous goodies? Marbles, mirrors, chalk (all previously mentioned), needle and thread, gum arabic, an empty glass bottle (hasn't Link taught us anything?), charcoal, a magnet (if setting appropriate), salt...

Swok
2010-05-09, 04:49 PM
Towel, obviously.


Handy Haversack is a close second. If only for being able to always have whatever tool in it you want a move action away. And then you fill it with marbles rope shapesand Tree tokens and towels.

Darklord Xavez
2010-05-09, 05:03 PM
Simply my favorite, the most versatile and useful Item in the entire world.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b60OZhrTB6o

This is my shovel. There are many like it but this one is mine. My shovel is my best friend. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life. Without me, my shovel is useless. Without my shovel I am useless. I must shovel my shovel true. I must dig straighter than my enemy, who is trying to kill me. I must chop him before he shoots me. I will. Before God I swear this creed: my shovel and myself are defenders of my country, we are the masters of our enemy, we are the saviors of my life. So be it, until there is no enemy, but peace. Amen.

My character actually had something like it at one point... except it couldn't fold.:frown:
-Xavez

WeeFreeMen
2010-05-09, 05:14 PM
My character actually had something like it at one point... except it couldn't fold.:frown:
-Xavez

I never leave home without it, and have yet found a problem it can't solve. ;p
Folding is just a bonus, for extra storage space. However, that extra space is useless as all you need is Sir Shovel. :smalltongue:

arguskos
2010-05-09, 05:18 PM
I never leave home without it, and have yet found a problem it can't solve. ;p
Folding is just a bonus, for extra storage space. However, that extra space is useless as all you need is Sir Shovel. :smalltongue:
It lets you carry two of them.

Darklord Xavez
2010-05-09, 05:20 PM
I never leave home without it, and have yet found a problem it can't solve. ;p
Folding is just a bonus, for extra storage space. However, that extra space is useless as all you need is Sir Shovel. :smalltongue:

If you can't fold it, it's more unwieldily as a hammer and shield, and can't be used as a nail prier, lifter, anchor, or can opener. It makes me sad.:frown:
-Xavez

Loxagn
2010-05-09, 05:39 PM
A tailoring kit and a straight razor. Because you never know.

horseboy
2010-05-09, 06:07 PM
Simply my favorite, the most versatile and useful Item in the entire world.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b60OZhrTB6o


Did you see them use it on Deadliest Warrior (http://www.spike.com/full-episode/green-beret-vs/32039)? Those things can cleave a man's skull in two and scoop out the brain in one hit. If only you could eat it, it's everything you'd need.

Darklord Xavez
2010-05-09, 06:37 PM
A tailoring kit and a straight razor. Because you never know.

That's right, you never do...


Did you see them use it on Deadliest Warrior (http://www.spike.com/full-episode/green-beret-vs/32039)? Those things can cleave a man's skull in two and scoop out the brain in one hit. If only you could eat it, it's everything you'd need.

You can use the shovel to catch animals for food (i.e. throw it at a squirrel). There you go.
-Xavez

The Big Dice
2010-05-09, 06:59 PM
Towel, obviously.


Handy Haversack is a close second. If only for being able to always have whatever tool in it you want a move action away. And then you fill it with marbles rope shapesand Tree tokens and towels.

Both of these.

If you have rope, you won't need it. In fct, the odds are anything that "might come in handy" probably won't. But a towel and a Heward's Handy Haversack are essential.

Vizzerdrix
2010-05-09, 07:25 PM
Shapesand. It is every non magical item on this list. Ever.

CockroachTeaParty
2010-05-09, 08:19 PM
Wow, I never knew about shapesand. That's some pretty amazing stuff. How much is contained in a 100 gp jug, though?

Every character I'll ever play from now on will have shapesand. There's no reason not to.

tordirycgoyust
2010-05-09, 08:21 PM
what book is shapesand in?

senrath
2010-05-09, 08:23 PM
Sandstorm, I believe.

Vizzerdrix
2010-05-09, 08:26 PM
Aye, tis from Sandstorm. and the general rule I use is no item weighting more than the amount of shapesand used. So a single jug could make it's weight in rope, or two to make a tent.

Set
2010-05-09, 08:29 PM
A battering ram.

A battering ram to open doors, a crowbar to open everything else, pitons to spike things shut and a Handy Haversack to hold it all.

Although the best 'tool' money can buy for opening stuff, closing stuff or generally breaking stuff is a half-orc barbarian.

CockroachTeaParty
2010-05-09, 08:36 PM
It's often really tiring to look through tons of books and fill out mundane equipment. Now I can just write down 'shapesand.' Yessss.

It's like the perfect item for a factotum. Combine it with illusions, or even prestidigitation, to change the color of a shapesand item, and it's even more useful for disguises.

You need a decent Wisdom score to really get the most out of it, though, but whatever.

crazedloon
2010-05-09, 08:44 PM
You need a decent Wisdom score to really get the most out of it, though, but whatever.

not really since you can sit there until you make the DC 20 and even if you can only shape a little at a time it stays shaped until you unshape it.

prufock
2010-05-09, 08:50 PM
Sovereign Glue is one of my must-haves. Just don't forget to pick up some Salve of Slipperiness and Universal Solvent.

Stompy
2010-05-09, 09:01 PM
Our party used a feather tree token to bull rush a CR ~16 devil into a sphere of annihilation. We were level 7 at the time.

Also, sovereign glue is fun, just glue someone to a permanence-d wall of force for mind-breaking fun times.

JaronK
2010-05-09, 09:13 PM
Acid melts through armor and metal.

Even if the door is adamntium, you can melt the stone around it with enough time and acid. =P

It doesn't. It doesn't ignore hardness, it just doesn't have its damage halved or quartered (like fire or cold damage). It'll never get through adamantium, and is unlikely to even get through stone unless it's VERY strong acid.

I love Immovable Rods and Enveloping Pits... so many uses for those. And I never leave home without marbles.

JaronK

WeeFreeMen
2010-05-09, 09:58 PM
If you can't fold it, it's more unwieldily as a hammer and shield, and can't be used as a nail prier, lifter, anchor, or can opener. It makes me sad.:frown:
-Xavez

Tie 2 of them together. Thats like: Shovel * 2 = Win
In math.

WeeFreeMen
2010-05-09, 09:59 PM
Did you see them use it on Deadliest Warrior (http://www.spike.com/full-episode/green-beret-vs/32039)? Those things can cleave a man's skull in two and scoop out the brain in one hit. If only you could eat it, it's everything you'd need.

Holy crap, I did NOT see that.
*watches*

Wow.

lyko555
2010-05-09, 10:28 PM
a pitch fork has so many use's
in my current campaign ive used it to : barricade doors/windows, cook food in a campfire, dig holes (not shovel like but stab it into the ground until the soils loose enough to scoop out easily), manacle some one to a wooden wall, use as a boat oar( wraped a shirt around it), a net (loosend the shirt), a torch (light said shirt on fire), stab people cause you know peasants can use em, and last but not least to move hay.

Chronologist
2010-05-09, 11:47 PM
I have to go with the Rod of Ropes.

Sure, it's pretty expensive at 3,000 gp. Sure, you could get tons of Shapesand and even other magical items for the same price. Sure, it's a magical device and hard to use if you're not skilled in UMD.

However, it is a grappling hook, 300 feet of rope, and ZIPLINE all rolled into one.

My Factotum never leaves home without it. So far, he's managed to save over a dozen NPCs by swinging into battle, has deactivated more traps than I can count, and it makes pretty good entrances and exits. Oh, and he's used the grappling-hook function to kill about 50 enemies so far.

It's not every day you find a tool that can simultaneously kill the villain, save the princess, and make a flashy getaway for you.

Ravens_cry
2010-05-10, 12:15 AM
Pen and paper. How many times has our butt been saved by pen and paper.
Lots, just lots.

Seffbasilisk
2010-05-10, 12:30 AM
Nonmagically? I generally go with a maul or some other hammery-type. Adamantine if cost is no object.

Magically? Rod of Surprises. MIC. Look it up. I'll wait.

Magdela
2010-05-10, 12:38 AM
Pen and paper. How many times has our butt been saved by pen and paper.
Lots, just lots.
Because the pen is mightier than the sword.

That was terrible.

The most useful tool I've used so far? Do weapons count?

If not,

I'll have to go with a coffin. It makes for great entrances into the campaign. "You wake up, it's dark"
*10 minutes of adventuring later*
(to a different player)
"You hear something moving in the cemetery"

Ironically, it was our cleric to Pelor stuck in a coffin.

And it's good for freaking out guards, since at one point we had a small animal and half a choker in one coffin. They had been dead for 3 weeks at that point. We also had a big barrel of taint on us. Needless to say, the guards asked no questions when we tried to enter the city.

Thajocoth
2010-05-10, 12:43 AM
Most useful item I've had has been a Rope of Climbing. Minor action: Rope moves 10 squares and can tie itself on something. Though, my Winged Boots are starting to minimize the rope's effectiveness, since I no longer take fall damage, and therefore jump down pits.

Kalaska'Agathas
2010-05-10, 12:47 AM
Duct Tape. Or, better yet, Gaffer's Tape. I can mend anything in your theatre save a broken heart* with sufficient Gaff Tape. And a towel. And a knife.

Also, +1 to the rod of ropes. My first introduction to it was an NPC Batman Wizard or Factotum type who dual wielded them. It was an excellent campaign.

From the PHB, I never equip a character without: Caltrops, Silk Rope, Grappling Hook, Crowbar, Spade (preferably folding), bell, chalk, a flask of boozahol (preferably fine Whisky or foulest rotgut, thanks), tindertwigs, small steel mirror, whetstone, and flint and steel. And if I can afford it, a masterwork thieve's kit (and matching inquisitive's kit, assuming it's available and I can afford it). Regardless of class.

I remember the time my elf wizard 1 pulled out the crowbar to open a particularly difficult door (the barbarian couldn't open it, without raging/enlarge person) lecturing the dwarf barb 1 about 'leverage and proper application of force' and the DM stopped the action saying "Wait, since when have you had a crowbar?" to which I replied "Check the copy of my character sheet, it's there."
...
"Why so it is. Why were you carrying a crowbar?"
"I would think the reason is self-evident."

* And even a broken heart can be mended if I know who needs to be gaffed to whom (or who needs to be gaffed away from whom).

term1nally s1ck
2010-05-10, 01:44 AM
Some things that have not been mentioned.

Stone Dragon Belt, Novice.

Get Mountain Hammer, at any level past 6th (less with an initiating class.)

Good vs creatures with DR, but the best bit, is that it ignores hardness. This thing lets you break an adamantine door with ease, using a plain dagger.

Nolzur's Marvelous Pigments.

Anything you need.

Collar of Perpetual Attendance:

Unseen Servant at will. Literally does anything.

Tree Tokens, Survival Pouches, Folding Boat, Shapesand, Talisman of the Disk, are all versatile items, too.

I mean, if you can't find a use for spontaneous boats/trees/donkeys/any mundane tool, you're probably in trouble.

Ravens_cry
2010-05-10, 01:58 AM
Nolzur's Marvelous Pigments.

Anything you need.

And can get your way out of jam lickity-split. Stuck in a room with no door and spikes closing in and water rising up? Nolzur in a way out!
Also, depending on your reading of the item description, completely torque WBL.

term1nally s1ck
2010-05-10, 02:06 AM
The belt would do that as effectively. Just break the wall with a punch or something.

Ravens_cry
2010-05-10, 02:11 AM
The belt would do that as effectively. Just break the wall with a punch or something.
I guess that depends on if The Hulk or Bugs Bunny is more your hero.

Reynard
2010-05-10, 02:15 AM
If you're capable of smashing your face against a stone wall until the wall breaks first, you don't need expensive inks.

term1nally s1ck
2010-05-10, 02:22 AM
*checks HP totals of walls*

Huh. How about that.

Well, a character who is capable of fighting could probably do it, though it would take a bit longer than I thought. Nolzur's are more fun anyway. You could do the reverse, and paint a wall over the door, to be the trapper, not the trappee.

Killer Angel
2010-05-10, 02:27 AM
It's difficult to think to something after 3 pages.
mmm... a bag full of gold pieces?

Ashram
2010-05-10, 02:41 AM
It doesn't. It doesn't ignore hardness, it just doesn't have its damage halved or quartered (like fire or cold damage). It'll never get through adamantium, and is unlikely to even get through stone unless it's VERY strong acid.

I love Immovable Rods and Enveloping Pits... so many uses for those. And I never leave home without marbles.

JaronK

Acid goes through hardness, as does sonic. Fire has its damage halved, and cold and electricity are quartered.

(I could be thinking of Pathfinder, and if so, I like their interpretation better.)

ghost_warlock
2010-05-10, 03:12 AM
From the SRD (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/exploration.htm#hitPoints):

Energy Attacks
Acid and sonic attacks deal damage to most objects just as they do to creatures; roll damage and apply it normally after a successful hit. Electricity and fire attacks deal half damage to most objects; divide the damage dealt by 2 before applying the hardness. Cold attacks deal one-quarter damage to most objects; divide the damage dealt by 4 before applying the hardness.

So, acid and sonic ignore hardness. Electricity and fire do 1/2 damage before hardness. Cold sucks vs. objects.

sambo.
2010-05-10, 03:55 AM
i pretty much always have a Mirror on my character sheet.

attached at a 45 degree angle to the end of a 10' pole (cut a mitred slot in end of pole = WIN!), it's better, cheaper and faster than a lot of scrying spells for finding out what's around the next corner.

JaronK
2010-05-10, 05:07 AM
Acid goes through hardness, as does sonic. Fire has its damage halved, and cold and electricity are quartered.

(I could be thinking of Pathfinder, and if so, I like their interpretation better.)

Perhaps you are, because in 3.5 acid absolutely does not go through hardness, nor does sonic. It's a common misconception, because those are the only two who's damage is not divided in some way.

If you check that SRD quote, it says they do damage normally... NOT that they ignore hardness. It's talking about damage getting halved or quartered and acid and sonic not doing that. It never actually says they ignore hardness.

JaronK

Ashram
2010-05-10, 05:24 AM
Perhaps you are, because in 3.5 acid absolutely does not go through hardness, nor does sonic. It's a common misconception, because those are the only two who's damage is not divided in some way.

If you check that SRD quote, it says they do damage normally... NOT that they ignore hardness. It's talking about damage getting halved or quartered and acid and sonic not doing that. It never actually says they ignore hardness.

JaronK


Acid and sonic attacks deal damage to most objects just as they do to creatures...

Emphasis mine. Maybe a case of RAW vs. RAI? I don't think acid particularly cares how hard a metal is, as that has nothing to do with how fast an acid can dissolve it.

term1nally s1ck
2010-05-10, 05:40 AM
FAQs:

Hardness applies to all types of damage unless specifically
stated otherwise by the effect. (Page 165 in the Player’s
Handbook is sometimes misinterpreted to suggest that hardness
doesn’t apply to acid and sonic damage; in fact, the phrase
“apply [damage] normally after a successful hit” simply means
that the damage isn’t halved or quartered, as other energy
damage is.)

EDIT: Look at the Psionic powers in the SRD. The sonic option is almost always less damage but gains the ability to bypass hardness.

Tetsubo 57
2010-05-10, 08:19 AM
A knife. It is quite possibly *the* original tool. And there is a reason for that. It has literally an infinite number if uses. If I were to be stranded in any place, in any time and in any tech level I would want a knife to be my first item at hand. I personally always keep one available. I've carried one on my person for 33 years. I don't imagine any adventurer would be any different.

JaronK
2010-05-10, 01:48 PM
Emphasis mine. Maybe a case of RAW vs. RAI? I don't think acid particularly cares how hard a metal is, as that has nothing to do with how fast an acid can dissolve it.

Acid damages objects just like it does creatures. If creatures are somehow resistant to the damage (say, Acid Resistance) it does reduced damage, right? It doesn't have some special "ignore any resistance" property, right? And Hardness is a resistance to damage, right? Therefor, hardness still works... it's just that acid doesn't do half damage (like fire) or quarter damage (like cold).

Heck, with Animated Objects they actually are creatures, and they even have Hardness. Doing damage to objects as if they were creatures does the same thing to them.

But the FAQ makes it pretty clear, right?

JaronK

Darklord Xavez
2010-05-10, 01:57 PM
A knife. It is quite possibly *the* original tool. And there is a reason for that. It has literally an infinite number if uses. If I were to be stranded in any place, in any time and in any tech level I would want a knife to be my first item at hand. I personally always keep one available. I've carried one on my person for 33 years. I don't imagine any adventurer would be any different.

A knife (with a partially serrated blade), a towel, a shovel, a garbage bag, some twine, and some rope is all you need to survive on a desert island. With the knife's serrated section, cut some plant like bamboo to the desired length, put the knife on the end using the twine, and you have a spear for hunting and fishing. Use the towel as shade, to dry something off, or for covering rough surfaces. Use the garbage bag and some rocks to collect water, use the shovel for digging traps for animals, and use the towel and twine to make some snares, and you have food and water covered completely (speaking of which, you can use the towel to keep food cool). The rope is in case you want to climb a tree. You can easily make some sort of one-player game with the materials you have, so that you don't go crazy. If you can get a fire (you can fan it with the towel), you only have to wait until you are rescued.
-Xavez

Darklord Xavez
2010-05-10, 02:07 PM
Mirror, chain, and a hand drill (manual). Ever heared of the "Rainbow of Death?" Well Here's how it's done:

+ Make a hole in the frame of the mirror
+ Tie the rope through the mirror
+ Have your party mage cast a powerful (hopefully metamagiced) ray spell at the swinging mirror
+ By physics, you create a "Disc of Ray of X" around you.
+ CHARGE!!!!!

You win.
Anyways, what if you shoot a cone at it point-blank? I think the cone's area would be increased, but not its length. That's just awesome.
-Xavez

Thajocoth
2010-05-10, 02:13 PM
I don't think magic bounces off mirrors like light does. You'd just shatter the mirror and get 7 years bad luck.

Darrin
2010-05-10, 04:51 PM
And can get your way out of jam lickity-split. Stuck in a room with no door and spikes closing in and water rising up? Nolzur in a way out!
Also, depending on your reading of the item description, completely torque WBL.

Painting anything with Nolzur's Marvelous Pigments requires at least 10 minutes, although you may be able to talk the DM into decreasing the duration for very simple things.

Chaos Flasks and Shapesand are a bit easier to use in time-critical shennanigans.

Moofaa
2010-05-10, 06:02 PM
Extra oil for starting fires, rope + grapple, and the bane of my DM friend....a 1lb bag of flour.

Theres so many things you can think of to do with a bag of flour.

I used to use it to mark trails, fling it to create a smoke screen, use it to make myself look like a spirit, and I think I found a use at some point mixing it with water to form a dough-like substance then gumming up a contraption with it.

Also you can bake it into bread and eat it.

Hmmm one thing I never tried was mixing the flour with the lamp oil....would that burn well?

Sounds like a fun RL experiment.

Darklord Xavez
2010-05-10, 06:04 PM
Extra oil for starting fires, rope + grapple, and the bane of my DM friend....a 1lb bag of flour.

Theres so many things you can think of to do with a bag of flour.

I used to use it to mark trails, fling it to create a smoke screen, use it to make myself look like a spirit, and I think I found a use at some point mixing it with water to form a dough-like substance then gumming up a contraption with it.

Also you can bake it into bread and eat it.

Hmmm one thing I never tried was mixing the flour with the lamp oil....would that burn well?

Sounds like a fun RL experiment.

Dry flour is an amazing accelerant, so yes. It would burn VERY well.
-Xavez

WildPyre
2010-05-10, 06:15 PM
Need to carry a sonic screwdriver... best multitool ever!

Ravens_cry
2010-05-10, 06:46 PM
Need to carry a sonic screwdriver... best multitool ever!
I don't know, sonic screwdriver sounds like either a mixed drink or a marital aid.
And yes ,I know where it's from.

Thajocoth
2010-05-10, 06:58 PM
I don't know, sonic screwdriver sounds like either a mixed drink or a marital aid.
And yes ,I know where it's from.

What came to my mind is a device that screams at screws, and that somehow screws them in or pulls the screws out.

Or a screwdriver constructed from blue hedgehog quills.

Raimun
2010-05-10, 07:28 PM
Obviously...

A fork!

If you don't know why, you should play Metal Gear Solid 3.

CockroachTeaParty
2010-05-10, 07:42 PM
I'm loving the avatar, Darklord Xavez.

"Woo-hoo! I'm so happy! ARGH IT HURTS SO BAD! THE GREASE!"

Doo-dee-doo-dee-doooAARRRGGH Doo-dee-doo-dee-dooARRRGH!"

Warclam
2010-05-10, 08:05 PM
Chalk up another vote for shapesand. pick your favourite nonmagical item: you got it!

Though a few months ago, mostly just for fun, I decided to try making a masterwork tool for survival and deciding what was in it. Here's what I came up with (suggestions welcome!):

—field knife (acts as non-masterwork dagger in combat, 2gp, 1lb)
—compass (...really? not listed? say 1gp, 0.5lb)
—fishing line (I dunno, I'll just price it like twine mkay? 0.1gp)
—fishing hooks *6 (0.6gp)
—survival tip sheet (0.4gp [price of paper])
—roll of twine (0.1gp)
—signal whistle (0.8gp)
—flint and steel (1gp)
—small steel mirror (10gp, 0.5lb)
—winter blanket (0.5gp, 3lb)

The tip sheet is a copy of this (http://www.m4040.com/Survival/Primer.htm). The whole kit weighs 5lb, same as the artisan's tools.

TheThan
2010-05-10, 11:08 PM
A knife. It is quite possibly *the* original tool. And there is a reason for that. It has literally an infinite number if uses. If I were to be stranded in any place, in any time and in any tech level I would want a knife to be my first item at hand. I personally always keep one available. I've carried one on my person for 33 years. I don't imagine any adventurer would be any different.

I agree with this. Knives have been used for centuries to do just about any mundane task you can imagine. Which makes it a very, very useful item to have, but its not the only tool that’s super useful.


Other great items to carry include but are not limited to the following:

Spade
Crowbar
Fishhooks
Fishing line
Flask
Flint and steel
Grappling hook
Hammer or tomahawk
Mirror
Oil
Rope
Chalk